Stockbroker fired after Twitter joke about hitting cyclist

A stockbroker has been sacked after tweeting that he hit a cyclist in his car -- and drove off because he was late for work.

Rayhan Qadar, who worked for Bristol-based financial service company Hargreaves Lansdown, was fired after tweeting: "Think I just hit a cyclist. But Im late for work so had to drive off lol."

Twitter picture from @DrMoroch0

Qadar, who goes by the Twitter name Ray Pew or @RayQ18, told police he was joking. He issued a follow up tweet in which he dubbed his previous post a "bad joke."

"We were made aware of a tweet regarding a collision between a car and a cyclist. Enquiries are continuing but the motorist has confirmed this was a joke," and Avon and Somerset police spokesperson said via email.

His apology was not enough to stop his former employer from giving him the boot though.

"One of our employees has failed to conduct themselves to the standards we expect of our staff. We find these online comments totally unacceptable," a Hargreaves Lansdown spokesperson said via email.

"Upon becoming aware of this issue we have terminated this person's employment with immediate effect."

Qadar has now limited his Twitter profile so that only his followers can see it.